Croatia Again Ignores BiH, Rejects Diplomatic Note on Economic Zone

SARAJEVO, (Patria) -  The Croatian Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs (MVEP) has rejected as unfounded a diplomatic note sent by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of BiH at the end of January due to the announcement of the declaration of an exclusive economic zone in the Croatian part of the Adriatic Sea.

Minister of Foreign Affairs of BiH Bisera Turković intervened due to the announcement of the declaration of an exclusive economic zone (EEZ), claiming that this threatens the rights of BiH, i.e., its right of access to the open sea.

The MVEP stated in its response sent to Sarajevo that it sees no reason for such a reaction because in this case there is no violation of international law, with which high Bosnian-Herzegovinian officials such as the current Chairman of the Presidency of BiH Milorad Dodik agree.

About all plans for the declaration of an exclusive economic zone, Croatian Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Gordan Grlić Radman directly informed Minister Turković in December last year. Croatian Ambassador to BiH Ivan Sabolić informed the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of BiH about this, and Dodik later said that the declaration of the zone does not call into question the rights of BiH.

- It should be borne in mind that the rights of BiH were not violated in the process of declaring an exclusive economic zone by Croatia and that this country is behaving correctly in this regard. To sail from BiH to the open sea, i.e., international waters and vice versa, one must pass through the territorial waters of Croatia, and this is clear to anyone who looks at the map except Turković - Dodik said, commenting on the earlier note sent from Sarajevo to Zagreb on January 27.

Based on these facts, the MVEP informed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of BiH that it cannot accept their note as legitimate and official positions of BiH on this issue.

The declaration of Croatia's exclusive economic zone comes into force on February 13, and the MVEP points out that this will not cause any consequences for BiH because, in relation to that country, the legal regime of Croatia's protected ecological and fisheries zone (ZERP) has been applied since 2003, which now becomes the EEZ.

The MVEP reminds that, in accordance with its obligations arising from the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), Croatia has enabled unimpeded access to and from the coast of BiH to the ZERP.